November 24 (SeeNews) - Macedonia's small and medium-sized companies (SMEs) need to catch up with their peers
in regard to online transactions, ICT skills and R&D support, the European Commission said.
The lack of a skilled labour force and basic business skills are a bottleneck for most SMEs, affecting their potential for growth in productivity and competitiveness and, consequently, in new employment, the European Commission said in a report reviewing the performance of SMEs in member and non-member states.
"Other remaining problematic issues include regular access to finance with a dearth of alternative non-banking financing sources, and a lack of entrepreneurship which is viewed negatively by those who believe that setting up a business is the only option to find work," EC noted.
The administrative burden needs to be further decreased. It requires improvements in coordination among public policy makers and strengthened dialogue with the SME stakeholders.
To address the relatively unpredictable regulatory environment there needs to be a more systematic and fuller use of the existing stakeholder consultation system including for SME stakeholders.